How And Why We Reworked Our Service Structure

Many years ago before SalesFirst, I worked at T-Mobile. It was the first company where I had groups of mentors that taught me about leadership planning and executing on our goals. One of the company’s stated goals at the time was to be the easiest company to do business with. As a journalism major, I never liked that the phrase ended with a preposition, but it got the point across. The idea was to remove friction so customers could quickly sign our contracts.

Fast forward to 2025 at SalesFirst Recruiting. In January of last year we set a goal for 15% of our business to be “contained” or “retained,” which in practice meant customers choosing options that required a down payment. We did not hit that goal. Part of it was the economy. Customers were already spooked about heading headcount, and the last thing they wanted was to put money down before they even hired someone. But part of it was the structure we set up.

We weren’t the easiest to business with. If our structure left customers feeling like they needed to negotiate, protect themselves, or clarify edge cases after they have already committed time and energy, then the experience was not actually easy, regardless of how it was branded.

I didn’t do much work over the 2025 Holidays outside of planning for 2026 and thinking through these things.

The Decision We Made

The central question we asked internally was ,“How much risk are we willing to share with our clients, and how can we make that clear?”.

That question led directly to the creation of our Core, Strategic, and Executive offerings.

First, we ditched the industry jargon. We had contingent, contained, and retained searches at the time. It made perfect sense to us, but customers needed explanations and didn’t always understand why one was better for them. Contingent felt simple to them while contained and retained seemed like an upsell, not an improvement.

We instead rebranded and restructured our three direct-hire products into something much easier to comprehend and much easier to share with our customer base.

What Core, Strategic, and Executive Mean

First, it’s important to note these are not pricing tiers. The fee is the same across Core, Strategic, and Executive. The difference is structure.

Core searches are 85% of what we do, and are now backed by a 90 day guarantee with a full account credit or a pro-rated cash refund. No down payment is required. This structure is intended for roles where speed and throughput matter and where the hiring process is relatively straightforward. For us that usually means Account Executives, Outside Sales Reps, Marketing Coordinators, etc.

Strategic searches are designed for situations where a hire is expected to have meaningful impact, but that impact will take time to show up. For that reason, these searches are backed by a 180 day guarantee with either a full account credit or a pro-rated cash refund. To receive the 180 day guarantee, a 30 percent down payment of the estimated fee is required. That down payment is tied to our delivery commitment and is refundable if we do not perform. This structure is intended for roles with greater complexity, longer onboarding periods, and outcomes that are measured over time rather than in the first few months.

Executive searches are designed for companies making a C-level hire where getting it right matters more than moving quickly. These searches are backed by a 365 day guarantee with either a full account credit or a pro-rated cash refund. To receive the year-long guarantee, a 30 percent down payment is required, and the search must be exclusive to SalesFirst. Exclusivity allows us to remove barriers from the relationship and operate as an extension of your company for the duration of the search. We recruit and vet all talent that enters the process, including candidates you are already considering internally. The fee applies regardless of who is hired because our responsibility is to ensure you hire the best possible leader, not to compete for placement credit. The one year guarantee reflects both the risk of executive hires and our confidence in the depth of the vetting done upfront.The price does not change. Only the structure and the duration of shared accountability change.

Why We Kept Pricing The Same

We made a deliberate decision to keep pricing consistent. If a client wants more support, the answer should not be a higher fee. It should be a clearer agreement about responsibility. By separating structure from cost, clients can choose the level of protection that matches the importance of the hire without feeling like they are negotiating safeguards. The decision becomes practical rather than transactional.

What This Required Internally

We had several company meetings about this, and this change forced us to tighten our internal systems, align expectations across recruiters, and remove negotiations that existed to protect us rather than improve outcomes.

How to Think About the Choice

What this ultimately gives clients is choice without pressure. The structures are fixed, the tradeoffs are clear, and the decision happens before the search starts. Once the work begins, everyone is aligned on expectations, risk, and responsibility. That is what Core, Strategic, and Executive are designed to do.